Being Green

Wood vinegar, a by-product of charcoal production, has been used in agriculture for over two thousand years, both as a growth booster for plants and a natural pesticide. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Ralf Dedig, the owner of Namibian company, Makarra Wood Vinegar, about the benefits of the product.

Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant on earth, and products made from this grass are highly eco-friendly. Among its many benefits to the environment is the fact that it absorbs twice as much carbon dioxide as trees and generates an impressive amount of oxygen. Glynis Crook caught up with Go Bamboo, a company that imports bamboo toilet paper, kitchen towels, and facial tissues at the recent Organic and Natural Products expo. She spoke to co-founder Nashrad Dass about their products.

Two bird conservation organisations, BirdLife South Africa and Sanccob, are taking the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment to court over what they see as a flawed plan to protect the endangered African Penguin. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook asks Sanccob’s head of conservation, Nicky Stander, what motivated them to do this.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Nileta Knoetzen, co-founder of Malmesbury-based company, Growing Paper, which not only hand-manufactures paper from paper waste, but also infuses it with seeds so you can “plant” it after use.

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY GERLINDE MOSER OF RE/MAX. Being Green – Your window on the environment broadcast every Friday morning at 9.30. Glynis Crook will focus on key issues affecting our lifestyles, science and research outcomes, the quest for sustainable living and a healthier planet.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Heather Wares of the Two Oceans Aquarium about the incredible work done by its foundation in the field of ocean research and conservation and the beach clean-up it is holding at Surfers’ Corner, Muizenburg, on Saturday morning. Time: 9h-12h. Bring along gloves and a bucket to collect the trash.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Honest Chocolate co-owner, Anthony Gird, about their efforts to make their products sustainable and environmentally friendly and how climate change is impacting cocoa bean production. To find out more about their chocolate and workshops, visit their website: honestchocolate.co.za

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Greenpop’s Zoe Gauld-Angelucci about the organisation’s incredible urban greening and forest restoration projects and the Reforest Fest is it holding in the Overberg on the Easter weekend.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Victor Sterling, co-owner of Delheim Wine Estate, about the importance of soil quality and the farm’s practice of planting cover crops between the vine rows.

Reminder to not waste water as dam levels drop below two-thirds About a week ago, the Western Cape Department of Water and Sanitation reminded residents of the need to be cautious about the amount of water they use. This as dam levels in the region collectively stood at 65.8 per cent. In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to climate scientist, Dr Peter Johnston, who says that usage has increased dramatically in the years since Day Zero.

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Shani Judes, director of the Wavescape Surf and Ocean Festival which takes place from 1-14 March. It features a host of events focusing on ocean conservation, including a beach clean-up, documentaries, and a charity auction of surfboards painted by South African artists. Find out more on www.wavescape.co.za

In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Christiaan Gildenhuys, a postgraduate student in Stellenbosch University’s Department of Botany and Zoology, who has co-written a paper about the 400-year-old history of oaks in the Cape, and why they are now becoming a problem.

A major United Nations report on the world’s migratory species, published earlier this week, has found that nearly half of them are in decline and are increasingly in danger of being wiped out. Of the over 1,189 species assessed, researchers found that more than one in five of the already threatened species now face extinction. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Colmán Ó Críodáin, Head of Policy, Wildlife Practice at WWF International, who is at the conference in Uzbekistan.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Dr Wentzel Coetzer, a conservationist and member of the Greater Kabeljous Partnership, that has launched a campaign to preserve two key sites in the area of Jeffrey’s Bay that are home to several endangered animal and plant species.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Nora Thiel, co-owner of Delheim Wine Estate, about conservation efforts at the farm. It is not only a WWF-South Africa Conservation Champion but was also recently named the 2024 Conservation Pioneer for the Cape Winelands region, in the Great Wine Capitals’ “Best of Wine Tourism” awards.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Hugh Tyrrell, director of Green Edge and a specialist waste management and recycling consultant, about problems with waste collection in townships that seem to have come to a head this week with reports that the mayor tabled a motion to place the executive director of urban waste management on suspension.

In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Gaathier Mahed, a senior lecturer in geosciences at Nelson Mandela University, about an ancient system of drawing water from aquifers called a qanat. Not only is this ingenious method of water supply recognised by UNESCO as an outstanding example of traditional technology, but it is also an environmentally-friendly option.

Scientists at Europe's Copernicus Climate Change Service on Tuesday confirmed that the world is dangerously close to a global warming limit as 2023 goes down as the hottest on record by a substantial margin. In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook speaks to Willem Landman, a professor in Meteorology at the University of Pretoria, about the report.

PROUDLY SPONSORED BY GERLINDE MOSER OF RE/MAX. Being Green – Your window on the environment broadcast every Friday morning at 9.30. Glynis Crook will focus on key issues affecting our lifestyles, science and research outcomes, the quest for sustainable living and a healthier planet.

We’ve been hearing a lot this month about climate change and the impact the rise in global temperatures is having on so many aspects of our lives. One of these is the likelihood that the size, frequency, and severity of wildfires will increase in the years to come. In Being Green this week, Glynis Crook, speaks to Working on Fire managing director, Trevor Abrahams, about the impact of global warming on the “fire season” in the Western Cape.